Michael W. Coyer this morning appeared before Bay County Circuit Judge Kenneth W. Schmidt and pleaded guilty to one count each of embezzlement by an agent or trust between $1,000 and $20,000 and forgery. The former charge carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison, while the latter is punishable by up to 14 years imprisonment.

Coyer, 39, said his embezzlement occurred from November 2011 through January. On Dec. 30, he entered a Chemical Bank in Bangor Township and forged the signature of then-treasurer Kristy Brandt on a fair association check, keeping the cash for himself, he said.

“I just wrote a check,” he told the judge. “I was helping … My mother passed in April. I borrowed some money and was going to pay it back.”

Court reports indicate that during state police troopers’ investigation, Coyer stated in a hand-written confession that he was pilfering the funds to “help a friend out” and that he planned on repaying the fair board.